Sebastien Bassong has completed his move from Newcastle United to Tottenham Hotspur for a fee in the region of £8m. The French defender underwent a medical tonight and becomes Harry Redknapp's fourth signing of the summer.

The 23-year-old is needed by Tottenham as Jonathan Woodgate and Michael Dawson are almost certainly ruled out for the start of the Premier League season – which begins with the visit of Liverpool on 16 August – while club captain Ledley King has a chronic knee problem that needs managing.

However Bassong will not be able to solve Redknapp's defensive conundrum straight away as he is suspended for the first two games of the season after being sent off for Newcastle at the end of the last campaign.

"I like Bassong, he's a young player with a good future and a good central defender," Redknapp said of the player last week.

Tottenham have already signed Kyle Naughton and Kyle Walker from Sheffield United and Peter Crouch from Portsmouth this summer.